The Sickbed Wisdom of Liam Sharp

Liam Sharp may have had to miss WonderCon this weekend because he was sick, but he has been trying to take care of his fans while recuperating. The current writer/artist on The Brave & The Bold series, which stars Wonder Woman and Batman, shared a few things on social media today that might help some other up-and-coming creators. First, having recently turned 50, he talked about his regret.

My biggest regrets in my comic career are not writing more – I love to write as much as draw – and not being able to stay in the mainstream that I loved when I first had a shot in the early 90s. There are many reasons, but I mostly think it was these factors: Self-doubt, which leads to fear, which leads to wild inconsistencies in the work. It’s good to reach, but I put style, and blood and thunder, over the harder work of just drawing as well as I could. I should have trusted my own voice, not tried to ape those of others.

That’s something any writer could learn from. He went on to say:

All my worst mistakes came from being hurt, and trying to be a harder, less sensitive, more ‘normal’ person. That knee-Jerk fuck you world, it’s all about me now. That never works. I’ve embraced my sensitivity. I shouldn’t change because societal norms say a thicker skin is best. Being a less sensitive person (to some that equates as weak. I think not!) would definitely make life easier! But I don’t think it would make my work better. So much of my creativity comes directly from empathy – feeling everything. It gives my quite brutish work a gentle heart. And yes, you can be a very manly man and a big sensitive softy with his heart on his sleeve. The two are not mutually exclusive! I used to aspire to care less. If it had worked I could have become a real arsehole.

He also addressed the advantage of being 50 years old.

The good things about being nearly 50? Well, I might not be the prettiest me, or the quickest me, but I’m definitely the best me so far. Which would imply there’s an even better me ahead…

And for those concerned about his health:

The sickbed is definitely a place of introspection! Looking forward to getting back into #6 BnB and finishing my grand little epic next week. The worst of this bug seems to have finally passed – hopefully! Another 48 hrs should see me right. Exciting things ahead! Onwards!

Liam also had time to post some progress art showing his work on a pretty crazy page featuring Batman. You can see where he stresses the detail in his pencils and where he leaves some of those details to be doing in the inking stage, like the actual pieces of Batman’s costume.

Has quietly been working at Bleeding Cool for over three years. He has written comics for Image, Top Cow, Shadowline, Avatar, IDW, Dynamite, Moonstone, Humanoids and Zenescope. He is the author of the Lucius Fogg series of novels and a published photographer.